With a murderer serving a life sentence having been granted leave, discussions about the Dutch justice system have flared up again: what happens when the desire to rehabilitate offenders puts the public at risk?

Cevdet Yilmaz was sentenced to life imprisonment after he walked into a bar in the town of Delft and calmly shot six people dead. In 2001 he was transferred from prison to a psychiatric clinic to prepare him for a return to society.

In the Netherlands, a judge determines whether an offender was in his right mind or mentally unbalanced when he committed his crime. The judge also decides whether the offender should serve his sentence in a prison or in a secure psychiatric clinic. The latter option is known as a psychiatric care order or TBS (literally: ter beschikking stelling; being placed at the disposal of - in this case - the Dutch state).

Cevdet Yilmaz only ended up in a clinic after several years because his psychological problems made him unsuitable for 'regular' prison. However, unlike ordinary convicts, patients in TBS clinics can be considered for a leave programme. That means they are allowed to leave the clinic from time to time, initially under supervision but later on their own. The idea is that they need to re-adjust to the outside world.

Outrage
Violent crimes committed by TBS patients during periods of leave have repeatedly sparked rows about this system. As a result, the rules have been tightened up. Last year, for instance, Cevdet Yilmaz had his leave withdrawn by the then Deputy Justice Minister Nebahat Albayrak, who was responding to fierce emotional pleas from the victims' families.

Now, however, an appeals committee for convicts has decided that the six-fold murderer should be permitted supervised leave. Joost Eerdmans of the Citizens' Committee Against Injustice is furious:

"Everyone here is outraged, particularly the family members. We believe people who have received life sentences should not be allowed leave. Murderers should not be allowed leave during their sentences. It's the interests of the public against those of the convict. They should take into consideration the wishes of the minister, the deputy minister and the whole parliament, all of whom want to put the brake on this."

Those defending the prisoners point out that it was the justice minister himself who granted permission in 2001 for Cevdet Yilmaz to be allowed leave. They argue that the decision of one minister cannot simply be countermanded by another. Even Joost Eerdmans disapproves.

"The result of all the commotion this has caused is that the minister is now acting as the judge and making his own rulings. He realises that the public is no longer prepared to accept it."

Which just goes to show that the Netherlands is still failing to find the proper balance between protecting the public and rehabilitating offenders. Now a databank has been set up containing information about TBS patients and the risk they represent to the public. It's another stopgap measure while the basic discussion remains unresolved.